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One of the main targets in relationship marketing is to ensure continued retention of profitable customers by building on and sustaining a stable long-term relationship that will subsequently result in customer loyalty behavior. This study focuses on relationship marketing tactics (RMT) dimensions of brand reputation and trust and how it influences customer loyalty, as well as examining the mediating effects of relationship quality (RQ) of commitment and trust within the context of a competitive mobile telecommunication service industry. Using quota sampling approach, a total of 382 survey questionnaires' usable feedback were collected from targeted respondents for data analyses. A quantitative analytical method was applied via SPPS version 20.0 and a PLS-SEM software procedure using Smart PLS version 3.0 with bootstrapping analysis to test the developed hypotheses. Hypothetical results revealed differential effects of RMT on customer loyalty. Brand reputation significantly influenced both commitment and trust. Alternative attractiveness also significantly affected commitment and trust. The mediating effects of RQ further revealed the continued importance of commitment and trust as key factors in developing a successful customer loyalty. Several theoretical and managerial implications are further discussed.

Over the years, past research has revealed that human nature is continuously evolving. Inevitably, this evolution is further extended to individuals’ adoption towards a new set of consumption behaviour. In the current global coronavirus pandemic (termed COVID 19), consumers are further contemplating on alternative forms of payment in pursuit of a safer method to purchase goods and services.

Over the recent years, customer experience has paved its way into the global tourism industry which is generally viewed as an experience-intensive sector. However, the major forces of customer experience are still unclear and have been continuously debated amongst research scholars and industry practitioners alike. This study attempts to determine the extent to which virtual word-of-mouth (or vWOM) serves as one of the major driving influences on total guest experience, including both dimensions of escapism and aesthetic experiences respectively. Using a quantitative research method, questionnaire surveys were distributed to targeted respondents consisting of tourists who have stayed at any hotel, beach, and island resorts in Malaysia. Data analyses were carried out via a structural equation modelling technique using Smart PLS 3.0 statistical software in examining the hypothesized assumptions. The findings revealed significant hypothesized relationship between vWOM, and escapism experience. However, the hypothesized association between the vWOM and aesthetic experience was not supported. Several managerial contributions were subsequently observed. Keywords: Virtual Word-of-Mouth (vWOM), Total Guest Experience, Resorts, Tourist, Service Marketing